Traipsing the Terroir of Nebbiolo

Few places offer so intriguing a concentration of wonderful, indigenous red-wine grapes as the Piedmont region of northwestern Italy. Yet, nobody would dispute the primacy of nebbiolo, the great grape of Barolo and Barbaresco.

Nebbiolo is one of the world’s most distinctive grapes, with aromas and flavors utterly its own. Because it has resisted most efforts to grow it successfully elsewhere, it has become inextricably linked to the Langhe, the area within southern Piedmont that is home to the Barolo and Barbaresco zones. Nonetheless, this close identification of nebbiolo with the Langhe comes at the significant cost of ignoring other wonderful expressions of the grape from throughout the rest of Piedmont and in Lombardy, the neighboring region to the east.

To the north of the Langhe in the Alpine foothills are other remarkable nebbiolo-producing regions, like Carema, almost as far north as the Valle d’Aosta, and Ghemme and Gattinara to its east, just to name a few. Though these wines are certainly reminiscent of Barolo and Barbaresco, each is distinctive as well. And east of Piedmont in Lombardy, northeast of Milan almost at the Swiss border, is Valtellina, home to another exceptional rendition of nebbiolo.

Naturally, this being Italy, nebbiolo goes by many different names outside the Langhe. In Carema, it’s called picotèner. In Ghemme and Gattinara, it’s called spanna. In Valtellina, it’s chiavennasca. For simplicity’s sake, we’ll stick with nebbiolo.

These alternative nebbiolos have long been a sort of secret of those who prize the grape, though not a carefully guarded one. The Caremas of Luigi Ferrando are particularly prized, both the normal white-label cuvée and the special black label. Around New York, no Italian-accented wine list can be considered in vogue these days without at least one of the excellent Valtellinas from ArPePe, while sharp-eyed aficionados occasionally luck into wonderful old 1960s and ’70s-era spannas from Vallana.

But these are just a few of the alternative nebbiolos around. To get a better impression of what’s available, the wine panel recently sampled 20 bottles from Valtellina and various regions in Piedmont outside the Langhe. For the tasting, Florence Fabricant and I were joined by two guests, Jeff Kellogg, wine director at Maialino, and Francesco Grosso, wine director at Marea.

The tasting confirmed our impression that these other appellations harbor many nebbiolo treasures. Because Barolo and Barbaresco have rightly achieved such exalted reputations, it’s easy to think of these other nebbiolo wines as the easier, cheaper alternatives. In fact, that’s how they’ve often been portrayed, simply as bargain substitutes for their heralded siblings.

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No. 1 and Best Value: Mamete Prevostini Valtellina Superiore Sassella 2009CreditTony Cenicola/The New York Times

That’s an identity better suited for wines like Nebbiolo d’Alba, which come from the Langhe and are made from grapes that for one reason or another are deemed not suitable for Barolo. But these nebbiolos from outside the Langhe offer something different. They may not reach the heights of the best Barolos and Barbarescos, but in a sense that is irrelevant. They deserve to be considered and evaluated on their own terms.

So, speaking generally, how do they differ from Barolo and Barbaresco? No matter which of the other regions these wines come from, the grapes tend to be grown in cooler climates at higher elevations. This tends to result in wines that can be lighter and more delicate, paler in color, less tannic and more acidic than the Langhe nebbiolos.

Let’s be clear: nebbiolo by nature produces a tannic wine. These do not lack tannins, they simply will be accessible earlier than Barolos and Barbarescos, though they still require some bottle age. The flavors tend to be higher toned, more alto than baritone, you could say.

Historically, particularly in Valtellina and Carema, the greatest problem facing producers was ripening the grapes. Vineyards were on the northern edge for growing nebbiolo, and only the best growers, who farmed meticulously and limited their yields, were able to obtain consistency. Wise consumers tended to look for these wines only in the warmer vintages. The regions themselves worked out ways to compensate. In Ghemme and Gattinara, producers were required to blend in small percentages of other grapes to stiffen the wine, while in Valtellina, sforzato, a more robust wine, was made from nebbiolo grapes that had been dried in the Amarone style.

But in the last 20 years, viticulture in these regions has greatly improved, while climate change has left its warming mark as well. Nowadays, you will rarely find wines that seem underripe or unbalanced.

We did find wines in a variety of styles. Some were rustic and forthright. Others were light and graceful with great finesse, like our No. 1 bottle, the 2009 Valtellina Superiore Sassella from Mamete Prevostini. Our No. 2 wine, the 2008 Gattinara Osso San Grato from Antoniolo, was likewise bright, complex and subtle, while No. 3, the 2006 Gattinara from Monsecco, was broader and richer yet not lacking in finesse.

Ferrando has long been the standard-bearer for the Carema region. Its 2009 White Label was superb and just beginning to show its complexity. The Carema is a $45 bottle. On the cheaper end, the Caremas from the local cooperative, Produttori di Carema, like the 2010 we tasted, just $21, are reliably pleasing if straightforward. Rosso di Valtellina is intended to be a simple wine, and ArPePe’s succeeded admirably. It was simply delicious, and it gives you a taste of what you would find in ArPePe’s more exalted and expensive cuvées.

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No. 2: Antoniolo Gattinara Osso San Grato 2008CreditTony Cenicola/The New York Times

These wines can be bargains, like the Prevostini, which was both our No. 1 bottle and best value. Still, at $30, it wasn’t cheap. The No. 2 Antoniolo at $72 was the most expensive bottle in the tasting, though most of the wines were in the $30 to $45 range, which is about what you would pay for a low-end Barolo or Barbaresco.

What you get are producers, generally from family estates, who make the case for distinctive wines from indigenous grapes made with painstaking care. If you are a fan of Barbaresco and Barolo, you already understand how elegant, nuanced and soulful nebbiolo can be. These wines showcase the grape as expressed in different terroirs.

If you are a fan of Burgundy, you already appreciate the beauty of terroir, and of perfumed, subtle, haunting wines. Here is an opportunity to discover how much nebbiolo has in common with pinot noir.

And if you have not yet made the journey in a glass to Piedmont and Valtellina, then I envy the gorgeous discoveries that await you.

What the stars mean: Ratings, up to four stars, reflect the panel’s reaction to the wines, which were tasted with names and vintages concealed. The wines represent a selection generally available in good retail shops and restaurants and on the Internet. Prices are those paid in the New York region. Tasting coordinator: Bernard Kirsch.

What the stars mean: Ratings, up to four stars, reflect the panel’s reaction to the wines, which were tasted with names and vintages concealed. The wines represent a selection generally available in good retail shops and restaurants and on the Internet. Prices are those paid in the New York region. Tasting coordinator: Bernard Kirsch.